Money Laundering

Columbus Money Laundering Attorney

White Collar Crime Information: Money Laundering

By definition, a white collar crime is an illegal practice committed by
a person in a position of trust. This is usually within a business environment
with employers or employees who have abused their access to money or information.
When a person has come upon a large sum of money through committing a
white collar crime or another criminal offense, it can prove to be difficult to use the money
they gained. Simply depositing it into a bank will cause the authorities
to be suspicious and so the true source of the money must be hidden.

How Money Laundering Works

Whether money was gained by
drug trafficking,
prostitution,
embezzlement, or
fraud, the crime of money laundering may be added in order to use the money
that was acquired. Rather than having millions of dollars waiting around
to for the authorities to find, money laundering can turn dirty money
into clean money. There are three main phases of a money laundering operation:
placement, layering, and integration. Placement is by far the most risky
step because the first thing that has to happen is depositing the money
into a legitimate financial institution. Banks are required to report
large transactions and it is possible that it could raise suspicions.

The second stage of the task is layering. By moving the money around, the
true source of the dirty money can be confused and hidden. Depositing
it into different bank accounts, investing it into different businesses,
or making property investments can make the money extremely hard to trace
over time. Finally is the last stage, integration. This is the last stage
of the money layering where they make a deposit into a bank. Even if the
money is traced, it will appear to have come from a legitimate bank investment
or some other honest source.

Contact The Meranda Law Firm LTD for a Free Review

The government takes crimes of money laundering very seriously as it is
crucial in keeping organized crime and terrorist activities alive. By
cutting off the source of their funding, they are essentially cutting
off their entire operation. If you were accused of this offense, the penalties
you could be facing are extremely harsh. In order to avoid having your
reputation ruined and your freedom taken away, you need a skilled
criminal lawyer on your side throughout the entire situation. We have years of experience
in this area of law and will do everything in our power to protect your
best interests. We also offer a
free initial consultation so that you can learn exactly how we could handle your case.

To learn more,
contact a Columbus criminal defense attorney on our team at The Meranda Law Firm LTD.